KevinWaldo (at Gmail)

I hope you’re not confusing Yahoo with the Yahoo Directory – which costs $299. What SBI does is submit to Yahoo for you, not to the Yahoo directory…

That said, I’m an SBI user and wouldn’t have it any other way. The amount of work they do for us can’t be quantified and as a webmaster you’ll be able to do even more!

I just wanted to clear up that one detail… As for the rest, you’ll probably get more for free than you ever dreamed…

You can build the most attractive site(s) with all the bells and whistles and offer the best products on earth, but if you are not getting traffic, how is that beneficial? Manually submitting a site to all of the relevant search engines can be costly. Just to submitt your site to Yahoo will cost you $299 per year (nonrefundable – I may add). It appears that SBI automatically submits sites to the appropriate engines and forums, plus soooo much more for only $299.00 /yr. Not only do you save money but you save time also.

I think that some of the negative comments come from people who have not really tried it out and may not be willing to put in the time and effort to find a topic of interest that will enable them to create rich content that visitors will want to seek out and find.

I’m looking forward to trying it out!

There are hundreds of folks giving you information about basically anything. Those guys have been doing this business for years, already built many many websites and are able to guide you through the challenges you face during the website building process.

And it’s works. I can see my traffic growing on a daily basis with more and more subscribers. That’s the reward for my hard work.

Another important part of it is that gives you the freedom to do whatever you want to do and whenever you want to do it.

I have many friends already asked me to give them advice to get found by the search engines and to get more visitors to their sites.

I am very happy with their service and response time. Very professional, very helpful company. I can only tell you the best about them. I would highly recommend SBI to anybody

It’s true that SBI teaches newbies many foundational concepts that cut through the overwhelm and put them on the right track to success. But even after you’ve learned those basics, SBI has much to offer.

Probably one of the biggest things they have to offer is their suite of cutting edge tools. And new ones are added regularly, most at no additional cost. In fact, SBI has not raised their costs in years, and frequently offer specials.

They also offer ongoing education, which is valuable even to experienced online business people. Not to mention a tremendous mastermind group in the form of their member forums.

It’s really a great value, no matter how much experience you have. So, since you’re selling SBI as an affiliate, don’t mislead your more experienced visitors. They can benefit from building an SBI site as well.

There are a number of reasons why I recommend it but I would only recommend it for a rank beginner.

I think the number one reason is that any person looking to start a site with a commercial intent needs to be guided through the correct sequence of steps to avoid the pitfall of finding out that important piece of data AFTER you have already implemented something.
E.g Getting yourself some ungodly/unwieldy domain name that later you find out is not what you should have. Or naming all your site pages after your favorite pets!

There is a sea of info out there on the net about all aspects of internet marketing, SEO etc and for the newbie it not only becomes overwhelming but leads to paralysis or failure.

Whilst the SBI program does have its limitations the newbie, by following the dots, actually learns the important info and the correct sequence of implementation. Add to that the fact that SBI MUST make you successful to at least some degree to get their next year’s subscription and you do have a pretty good base from which to start.

Once a person had done a complete site with SBI, and if they had paid attention to the details along the way, I wouldn’t really see the need for getting another through them. He or she should be armed with some pretty solid basics to see them running by themselves independently.

I wouldn’t be surprised if this post was brought to the SBI forum’s attention to get some of their evangelists to pop in and add their glowing reviews in the comments :-)

I’m surprised they haven’t come over here to kick the crap out of you yet. LOL. They’re probably still rounding up the posse.

Great post, totally spot on.

For a complete newbie to setting up a website with the intention of making some money from it, SBI can be a good introduction. They provide a lot of good information about how to create good content and how to make a site that gives a good visitor experience.

But for anyone with some experience, you’ll probably find their system a bit restrictive. There are lots of things that you can do with any standard web host that SBI doesn’t allow, such as standard FTP access and php scripting (so you can’t run things like Wordpress or phpBB directly on your site).

SBI will tell you their system is set up the way it is for many reasons, and it works so how can you criticize? The system works for many people, but from what I’ve seen both in their forums and others, it doesn’t work any better than any other host would for many people as well. So this point is debatable.

They also have a long list of features that are included, and how it would cost $5000 to buy them all separately. I disagree with their analysis here – I don’t believe it would cost that much – but something to consider is if you buy these services elsewhere you can generally use them on multiple sites (an autoresponder service, for example). With SBI you only get one site so if you want to set up more, you have to pay the annual cost for each one ($299 I think right now).

If you are planning to set up multiple websites, the cost of these tools is considerably less when you factor in how many sites they can be used on.

The thing that I really didn’t like about SBI was the “MLM / rah-rah” feeling of the community. There is a palpable feeling of “ignore the man behind the curtain” in many of the discussions on the forum, and most people who criticize the system for any significant reason get lambasted by many other users, often by just spouting the same stuff that the SBI sales page tells them.

It goes so far as to have an “SBI Response Group” that finds negative forum threads around the net and points them out to other forum members so they can jump in and “correct” the information in those threads. Granted, some of it is in fact wrong but in other cases the information is accurate, it just doesn’t tow the SBI line.

I wouldn’t be surprised if this post was brought to the SBI forum’s attention to get some of their evangelists to pop in and add their glowing reviews in the comments :-)

As one of the earlier comments pointed out, most of the reviews you’ll find of SBI are written as thinly-veiled affiliate promotions, not true reviews. Most of them do little more than regurgitate what the SBI sales pages tell you.

I’m not an affiliate, so I just wanted to add my hopefully balanced opinion. If you’re someone who doesn’t want to know how the technical end of things works, and you don’t have a lot of prior marketing experience, SBI would be a good choice.

If you like digging into the technical stuff or you already have a good foundation in marketing, you can do better with a “standard” host and other services such as an autoresponder service that will run on as many sites as you want to build.

Now I am not a graphic designer but I think I am efficient enough with HTML and FTP to use standard hosting… but I am still willing to say that there is nothing better than Site Build on the market.

I have operated in both worlds and frankly I don’t miss the FTP, besides why is this myth still prevailing that the Internet is about graphic design… look at the evidence some of the prettiest sites are doing absolutely nothing.

Maybe I am sounding a bit cultish… So I better go and browse in the SBI forums or better yet build some content and kick my Non-SBI competition BUTT.

SBI the perfect way to build an online business…

It did come off a little MLM “rah rah” to me before I joined. But I figured I could just ignore that if I didn’t like it. There was no requirement to participate on the forums or interact with any other user of the product. But I’ve found the people on the forums to be pleasant, helpful people, who have brains in their head and whose critical reasoning seems to be functioning just fine.

I’m also a Buffy fan. Things like Buffy have a “cult following.” We are rabidly insanely fannish about our characters and storyline and all the products available to Buffy fans as well as cons. Lots of web geeks are culty about “something.”

Star Trek anyone? Firefly?

How many of you understand what this means: “Did you get the new cover sheet for the TPS reports?”

Office Space is another cult classic.

I don’t particularly like the templates, and do hope they improve “that” particular aspect of SBI. But I’m happy with everything else about the company.

I realize that the fact that many SBI users also promote SBI to others for a commission, disturbs some people and makes them “suspect.” But letting your fans and satisfied customers help spread the word about your product and then rewarding them for it, is just smart marketing.

I personally am NOT an SBI affiliate. I don’t make a single dime any time anyone signs up for it. But I still think it’s a great value and provides something other web hosts can’t provide, the tools and training you need to make your online business work.

Sure, it’s not ‘perfect’, nothing is. But in every area except templates, it over-delivers. And a lot of the rah rah is just excitement over finding something people like so much. And it’s nice to be a part of a helpful and supportive business community.

Z

Perhaps the most impressive thing about SBI is that Ken is so darn ON it when it comes to web PR! :-)

I AM assuming “enormous success”, partly because I’ve frankly had a track record of enormous success in the past.

But getting SEO traffic is genuinely hard, and I’ve come across SBI sites with more (way more) organic search traffic than much, much larger and better financed sites. Having my cake and eating it too would be to have SBI’s organic traffic expertise coupled with more flexibility in site technology.

In any case, I AM going to try a few sites in SBI – although as of this morning I decided I’d better hold off a few days for the 2-for-1 Xmas sale. :-)

My main objective was to start a website in a way that was cost effective. Hiring a professional web designer is very expensive, and I would have no control over the site. Not being a tech person, this would mean that I would have to run to the webmaster every time I wanted to make a small change to my site.

When we are thinking about doing business with an entity on the Internet our main concern is whether this outfit is a fly by night operator, or an honest business. In that respect I have to say that SBI is a very reliable business. You will definitely get your money’s worth and more.

Is SBI for everyone? No, it isn’t. Most of the people who buy SBI sites are business people, and they think like business people not web designers. I am a business person, and only an accidental “web designer.” What I want is for my site to advance the business, not to showcase my designing skills.

Recently, at another forum, a business asked people to evaluate their web site. It is one of the most beautiful sites that I have ever seen, gorgeous and sophisticated. One of the features was that the site will appear to the viewer according to the time of day in the place where the business is located. The business is located on the other side of the world from me, therefore, if I am at their site when it is morning for me, it is night for them. The problem? I could not read the darn thing. The content may have been great, but I couldn’t tell because it was unreadable. The site was also difficult to navigate. So the question is, did the site fulfill the goals of the business owner? I would say that it failed miserably because it did not advance the business at all. But it did showcase the web designer’s skills beautifully! As a business owner, that would not make me very happy. My site is there to market my business, not the web designer’s business.

I have been doing research on the Internet for many years, my profession requires it, so I have come across many many websites. Some are great, some are annoying, some are plain janes. But I find that, as a consumer of information, if a site is plain, but it gives me the information that I need, it is a winner for me. A site that is gorgeous, but I cannot get what I need; well, It just wasted my time.

My site is not even three months old, so I cannot tell you about making money yet. And the templates are indeed boring as heck. But it has allowed me to start a site (One very different from my original concept, but that is another story) that fits my needs. And once I have time to learn html, I will want to make changes so that it reflects my style a bit more.

Another point, about comments made that all people with SBI sites are addressing the same “talking points” and using the same phraseology; I think this is natural. When you are in a particular profession or line of work, you tend to use the same words to describe an experience. Most doctors sound alike, most lawyers sound alike, most web designers sound alike; it is natural that most SBI owners sound alike because they are using the same terminology all the time.

Again, is SBI for everyone? No. Is it for someone who thinks like a business owner, rather than a web designer? I would say yes. Does everyone succeed with SBI? No. Do many succeed? Apparently yes, since it has a loyal following. Will you lose your money to an unscrupulous operator if you buy from them? No, they are highly ethical. Is it easy? No, not for those of us who are tech challenged, there is a steep learning curve. Is it doable? Absolutely, you do get loads of help, especially from the forums.

It all depends on your goals. SBI fulfills the goals of a particular segment of the web population very well. But, like everything in life, it can’t fulfills everyones goals and expectations.

1) hyphenated domains are optional. Another myth. Hyphenated names are recommended for various reasons, non-hypenated for others. It’s another “SBI! myth.” YOU decide.

2) Regading CMS. First, I’ll refer you to the post above by Jeff, so we work within the proper context…

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“It’s really very simple. Do you have a successful site or blog that earns you real income, such as Darren does here at Problogger? If you do, then you do NOT need Site Build It!. Have you yet to establish a profitable business? Then try Site Build It!. They have an iron-clad guarantee, and the price is very low for what you get.”

–

So you have to decided on the above paragraph first. :-)

Next…

The CMS is not “old, clunky.” That’s a myth. You progress from training wheels to doing whatever you like with Dreamweaver, Photoshop, etc. Whatever you can do with regular FTP, you can do with SBI!. These are the myths I am talking about.

And even if your personal opinion is that the backend is not as slick as gmail (and it’s not, I agree), it doesn’t need to be.

What it needs to do is enable people to succeed.

In today’s world, people lose track of the end goal and get blinded instead by glitz and false promises. We sell steak. Yes, our sites “sell” it. But it’s steak, not sizzle.

(Even doing your own PHP, that can be handled through our Infin It! module. Of course, there are also dynamic advertising options through regular “upload your own HTML” which you can do with SBI!, too. But if you wanted your entire site to be php-delivered, no, that’s not SBI!. But then again, unless you are a larger company or VC-financed, you’ve lost sight of the end goal before even starting.)

Really…

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You’re assuming an enormous success before you get there. How about we get there first, together? :-) There are SBIers with over 2 million visitors per month and don’t feel constrained. It’s not the PHP that’s going to make you successful. :-)

–

Now, assuming that success…

3) Yes, there have been SBIers who HAVE left because they have wanted exactly what you outline in your third question. They have grown to the point where they want a totally dynamic site, able to do more than we intend to ever supply. They find out, of course, that it will cost them considerably more for the traffic (forget those claims of unlimited traffic — regular hosts will “get” you on the CPU) and all the tools, but that’s OK with them because they are making much more than they ever dreamed of.

They literally post to the forums to say good-bye, thanking everyone for the education they’ve received. They acknowledge that they could never have done it without SBI!.

There were, of course, other ways to do what they want to achieve within the SBI! environment, but that’s OK. I’m happy that we have impacted a life so positively, and…

At the end of the day, that’s what excites me, and everyone who works here, the most about SiteSell.com. I know it sounds corny, I know many of the comments here and elsewhere sound “cultish,” but it all comes from the entire company’s focus on every SBIer’s success. That word “cultish” has bad religious overtones, but remove those and think about any other business that is associated with that term…

I don’t know of a CEO who wouldn’t love the association. :-)

All the best,
Ken

P.S. If you have any more questions, there are good folks at question.sitesell.com — they will even openly tell you if SBI! is NOT for you. Really. :-)

Hyphenated URLs are not required, only suggested for longer than three word domains.

You can use PHP or any other script using a module in SBI! called Infin It!.

You host the scripts on a third party host and use a subdomain in SBI! to link them into your site.

The engines see the third party content as belonging to your SBI domain, not the third party.

So, you can in fact plug a phpbb forum, WordPress Blog or any other system into yourSBI! site.

I’m not going to evangelilze about SBI for fear of being blasted as a cult member or hyping it up to the max.

I’m from the UK so not easily swayed about overhyped claims and product. All I can say is that I used SBI to promote my offline business and within 18 months I was able to ditch all offline advertising as I was getting 99% of my new clients via the web.

That on its own saved me over 2 grand a year.

Does it have limitations? Yes of course it does.

Are there ways around it’s limitations? yes of course there are.

What you have to ask yourself if you own a pretty site is, does it make you money?

I’m another one of those who found the block builder a bit clunky, so I now upload my own pages and you can see the results at http://www.madaboutsmallville.com

Don’t expect a large site because it’s only been live a week or three.

I’m not here to try and convince anyone, I’m not going to waste my time trying to deperplex the perplexed.

Incidentally, my main 2nd tier page was indexed in Google within 2 weeks and I’m already getting traffic from keyword searches, within 3 weeks?

Take care and have a good holiday all.

Darren

Perhaps oddly, my main issue is with the hyphenated URLs, and ultimately with the limitations on using anything like PHP or Ajax.

My intention is to begin with an SBI site monetized thru SEM, but as traffic builds start to include more brand-name advertisers using IAB standard formats (please don’t argue with me about SEM versus CPM – just roll with this for now).

There appear to be three potential barriers to making this jump:

- Hyphenated URLs. They may be good for hit-and-run traffic from SEO, but they scare brand advertisers because they look so crappy. Is that a necessary or important part of SBI, or just a way to get around the fact that all the good URLs are taken?
- CMS. Using an old, clunky CMS is probably not a huge deal when you’re starting, but if you’re fortunate enough to get serious traffic and want to build a large online business, you’re going to inevitably want to use a modern CMS and certainly some programming like PHP or Java. Large advertisers typically want custom sponsorships of one type or another, and most require some custom coding.
- Migration. These sites seem tied at the hip to SBI’s back-end, and I’m scared to death that if I ever want to sell the site to someone who doesn’t use SBI for whatever reason, the sites won’t survive the “heart transplant” to another environment. Does anyone ever successfully move OFF of SBI when the time is right for them?

I guess the jist of my question is whether or not one can use SBI as a starting-off point, but take off the training wheels when the time is right.

As far as my SBI website goes…I’m excited to say that I am getting a few dozen visitors a day, my web pages are listed by 3 major SE’s and I’m on my way to a successful profitable business.

If this sounds like a script or a list of carefully prepared ‘talking points’… I’m sorry because you are totally wrong.

The fact of the matter is a majority of SBI people WILL have the same experience and the same information to share….we are all using the same hosting company, with the same tools and resources and most of us didn’t know a thing about HTML or CSS etc. when we started.

Would you expect a majority of the people who were drinking a fine bottle of wine to have the same positive and pleased reaction to it? The answer is Yes.

Would you expect a team of Olympic gymnasts to follow the same training program and produce high scores in competition? Knowing the results was due to the coach, the gymnasts training program and their individual determination? The answer is Yes.

You can either look at this as optimism or pessimism… or the glass is half empty or half full….

I understand most people might be a little leery when they hear great things over and over and OVER about any type of company. I was. But the difference between myself and many other pessimistic people …. well, the answer is, I did my due diligence and researched in more than one place, or one blog or one forum about SBI.

I suggest you do that too. You will find over and over and OVER again that more people are satisfied customers who have successful websites, renew their subscriptions and continue with a successful and profitable business…. all because of SBI…. and ya, you will find a few people who could be labeled as “bad apples” who want to share their frustrations…. the fact they are unhappy with what they got when they signed up with SBI and all the other negative things you can think of…. but you will find that anywhere with ANY company…. I’ve never heard of 100% satisfied customers…. but I have heard of 100% customer satisfaction, and SBI delivers that!

SBI provides an incredible opportunity for ANY person willing to take the time to review and utilize the tools in their website package.

Most people who are dissatisfied or unhappy customers are usually the ones who are looking for the fast track to make money. They are missing the point of what a successful business is, what it requires to set up and what you can accomplish if you are patient, systematic and detail oriented….. That is my opinion anyway….

Who ever heard of a mom and pop sandwich shop opening their doors and making 1 million in revenue their first year? I haven’t… but you might have heard about a shop opening and breaking even… the shop that worked hard and diligently with focus…. that is a more reasonable expectation.

If you don’t know that something is that good when you see it… or don’t want to open your mind that it is possible… well, quite frankly…. I’m personally okay with that…. It leaves me with more opportunity for higher traffic volumes, more sales leads, and greater income potential and the list goes on.

If you DO know something that is THAT good when you see it, then jump in!! Don’t waste your time and reap the benefits… you will have more support than you know what to do with!

So, my last point is going to be my “shared mantra” with many other SBI’ers…. “Slow and steady wins the race.”